Parental Advice
by SilverHuntresses
Summary: Clarisse La Rue has faced all her challenges with pride and has always come out victorious. But with the arrival of someone new in her life... will she manage to conquer it all? Birthday present to my BFF @AMillionPages


Clarisse La Rue couldn't understand why it wasn't working.

It had worked with her, why wouldn't it work with _her_?

It had to work otherwise when she was back on duty, she would never be able to survive.

Clarisse was sitting at the dining room table, flinching every time she heard her newborn daughter released a new cry. Clarisse didn't understand why she was crying now: she had been fed, she had been burped and she had been cleaned and, until ten minutes ago, she had been taking a nap quietly. If she was crying over nothing, she would be very disappointed.

Part of her didn't want to torture her little Silena. Clarisse didn't want to attach herself more to her baby or she'll never go back to duty. She had seen women in her unit that had opted to get out of the field and work as instructors just so they could be closer to their newborn babies. Clarisse wasn't like that, she _needed_ to be in the field.

Then, it was the problem with Chris Rodriguez. Her longtime partner and recently- not as recent as Silena's birth -husband had been spending long times with Silena, she would practically shut up at the sight of him. Clarisse didn't mind much- at the time, now she wasn't so sure -, Silena would spend long hours with him once she was back in the field, but that was straining their relationship as she would disappear into another room every time they were together.

_"She and you have to get used to me not being around..." She had explained to Chris after the first she'd done it. Chris looked at her, confused. "Soon, I'll be back in the field and I don't want her to cry for someone is not there..."_

_"Don't you think she would want to have those memories for when you're gone...?" Chris had counterattacked and Clarisse finished the discussion there, not even mentioning the topic again._

It was evident that Chris disagreed with her and his disapproving looks were giving the message loud and clear.

Then, it was the problem that it seemed that she didn't seem to connect with her daughter. She had heard first mothers complaining about how useless they had felt when dealing with their babies and Clarisse thought that wouldn't apply to her. Again, now she wasn't that sure. Silena simply didn't seem to keep her attention long enough in her but she only had eyes for Chris.

"Home..." She heard from the front door. She turned to see Chris hurrying away towards Silena and Clarisse sighed. She had been thinking about the topic over and over again in her head and things weren't as clear as she thought. She needed a second opinion and she didn't know who would give it to her. She didn't have many girlfriends and all those who could understand her well weren't mothers yet.

There was, however, two alternatives. One less painful that the other one. Deciding to gather that Ares' courage she had, she headed towards where Chris was.

"Chris..." She began getting his attention instantly. She always called him 'punk' or something like it. "I need to visit Jackson's mother... I'll try to be back before dinner." Without waiting for a reply, she left the apartment, leaving a calmed baby and a confused husband behind.

* * *

Clarisse took a deep breath and buzzed the apartment she was searching for.

_"Yes?"_ A male voice replied. _Not time to flee now..._

"Yes, I'm looking for Sally Jackson? I'm Clarisse La Rue..." The person on the other side of the buzzer didn't reply. It simply buzzed the door open and Clarisse walked in. Every step she gave, she felt she was walking directly to the gates of Hades. It was ridiculous, this woman would never hurt her and even if she hurt her, she'd never lay a hand on her. She was Clarisse La Rue, she wasn't afraid of anything.

That was the understatement of the century.

The door opened to reveal a middle-aged man with glasses and a welcoming smile.

"Welcome, Clarisse." She nodded at Jackson's stepfather, Paul Blofis while walking into the apartment. It looked like the place for two aspiring writers, books and papers everywhere. Not how Clarisse would have decorated. "Sally would be out in a second, want anything to drink?"

"No, I'll just wait. Thank you." She added at the end. Paul nodded and went back to what Clarisse assumed was the study. Thankfully, she didn't have to wait long as Sally walked out and greeted her with literally open arms.

"Clarisse, what a surprise!" She hugged the half-blood, surprising her a bit. She didn't even lose her smile when she didn't hug back. "It is good to see you again, but I'm sure you're here for a reason, right?" Clarisse nodded, not sure how to start. "Come, come..." Sally guided her to her little kitchen and made her sit around the table, waiting for her to start.

"Well, um... you see, Mrs-"

"Oh no, dear! Please, call me Aunt Sally..." Sally interrupted her, making Clarisse open her eyes wide. "Like it or not, you're family to me and Percy, so you might get used to it..." Her unnerving smile was still there. _Was there anything this woman would be scared of?_

"Right, so... Aunt Sally..." Sally smiled and nodded. "You see, I- I don't know what to do..." Clarisse finally admitted, not only to Sally but to herself. "I- Have you heard that I recently had a baby, right?"

"Oh, yeah! Annabeth mentioned that..." Clarisse simply nodded. Finally, Sally showed the first sign of concern since Clarisse arrived. "Is everything alright with her?"

"I- yeah, she's alright..." Clarisse assured her before lowering her head. "But I think I'm not sure what to do next... I-" Words failed her as she tried to explain but every time she opened her mouth, she thought it would sound wrong to even mention it. Sally seemed to see this and raises her hand.

"Based on what Percy has always told me about you..." Clarisse could read between the lines and implied the no spoken part. _I'm beating Jackson first chance I have!_ "...you're a very easy-to-read person. Hiding behind bravery would only get you so far, so why don't you let me connect the dots with what little I have?"

"Uh, sure..." Clarisse showed her confusion as she was not expecting this. Sally nodded, using her fingers to count her facts.

"You're not a very emotional person. You mentioned your daughter and I'm assuming her father is also involved in this." Clarisse nodded, waiting. "So, if I remember correctly on who your father is, you're probably in some kind of armed force unit, right?"

"SWAT." Clarisse simply specified. Sally nodded and crossed her arms.

"Obviously correct me if I'm wrong, but you're here for advice about if you should go back to work or not." Clarisse went still in shock. Was she that easy to read then...? "I'm also assuming that also implies you doing something completely ridiculous as not spending time with your daughter because you don't want your duty as a mother to interfere in your work duty."

"How-?" Clarisse's mouth could have hit the floor if it was that big. How did this woman, whom she only met a handful of times in her life, know about what she was thinking or doing? Sally continued to smile at her but her smile wasn't bright anymore. It was a bit sad.

"My dear..." Sally held her hands in hers. Clarisse noticed Sally's hand not only were slightly wrinkled but also had some spots of dough and flour. "There are some things you need to know before I give you some advice. Number one is babies don't come with a parental book. No, those books are not manuals." She continued when Clarisse opened her mouth. "Each baby is different and the same method won't apply to two babies."

"I must confess I've never read one of those parental books..." Clarisse confessed, smirking a bit. "Looked like a waste of time..." Sally nodded in agreement.

"What those books can do is give you a general idea, but they don't have magic formulas. Also, I'm sad to say that, no matter how much time you spend with your daughter, not being around won't make her independent. You can have the most attached kid in the world and also could be independent. No, it would only make her an emotional mess."

"What?" Clarisse frowned, not understanding.

"Your baby is spending a lot of time with her father and little with you. That would make her attach to him more than you. Not a bad thing but if you are continuously not there, she won't know how to behave when you _are_. You'll essentially become a stranger for her and her expectations and disappointments will rise and fall according to what you do and when you are."

"Oh." Clarisse didn't know what to say, it was the first time in a long time she didn't know what to do.

"Now, I know your job is important to you." Sally continued, patting her hand. "I'm not saying you have to completely ignore it but be honest with yourself... how long until you get injured? Or you can't do your job properly? Or when you- Gods forbid -you _don't_ come home again?"

Clarisse had never thought those things. She had always assumed that she'd be gone while serving her country or fighting to defend the Gods. She would do it until the last consequences. What Sally was doing was giving her a crash course along with a cold ice bucket of reality. No wonder so many females of the unit decided to become instructors or getting down on compassionate grounds!

"I- I haven't thought about that, honestly..."

"The good thing is that you realized early on..." Clarisse eyed Sally, curiously. "Making this wondering or revelations years on would have made the relationship irreparable and well..." She shrugged, not wanting to mention some of the most horrifying consequences.

"I have to say, I'm more confused now than before..." It was Sally's time to hear her. "I came here hoping to find a solution or simply hear some answer I haven't seen for myself yet but I'm leaving with more questions than answers..."

"Understandable but there's only one question you have to ask yourself?" Clarisse blinked and waited. "What is going to be more fulfilling in 10 years? Your job? Or watching your daughter grow up?"

* * *

It wasn't very late when Clarisse returned home but her mind was so at peace that she hadn't seen the time.

As soon as she walked through the door, she saw Chris waiting for her by the kitchen. His head was laid on his hands and his eyes were closed. He was either asleep or was about to. By the looks of it, he was waiting for her to have dinner. It was then when Clarisse saw the clock on the wall. 9:30 pm. Smirking, Clarisse did something out of character for her.

She got closer and touched his shoulder gently.

"Chris...?" Chris jumped out of his seat, wide awake. After the sudden shock and some chuckles about it, the couple sat down and began the talk they should have had a long time ago. And Clarisse got the ball rolling. "I'm sorry." Chris blinked one, two times before rubbing his eyes and pinching himself. Clarisse rolled her eyes at him. "You're awake, punk. And I'm not saying it again, so don't make me repeat it!"

"Just making sure..." Chris confessed, looking at her. "So, how's Mrs. Jackson?"

"Aunt Sally is fine. Her own squirt is growing up very fast... She claims time is not enough to enjoy themselves..." While Clarisse gathered the courage to tell Chris what was on her mind, she missed the complete shock on his face about the familiarity she was talking about _Jackson's_ mother. "And I- I would like to do the same..."

"I don't follow..." Chris admitted, mostly to shake away his own confusion. Clarisse sighed. _Here goes nothing..._

"Like I said many times before, I was of the idea that Silena had to grow up not attached to me because of my work..." Clarisse began, grasping her hands together under the table. "But the more I put that thought in practice, the more I felt it was wrong and that would take me away from my goal at work... I couldn't understand why I was having a hard time. I'm a daughter of Ares! My duty should be clear but..."

"But what?"

"Aunt Sally reminded me that I have another duty now. Mother duty." She finally managed to look at Chris in the eye, her cheeks a little red by a combination of embarrassment and bravery. "And that I was failing at that." Chris did nothing, just listened. "So, I was hoping you could listen to my plan...?"

"I'm listening..."

"Before my maternity leave expires, I'm gonna ask for a transfer, from the unit to the NYPD SWAT area. Fixed hours, weekends off. Won't do any mission that involves unnecessary risks. Probably retiring in five, six years?" She didn't sound sure if she could get all her requirements but she did have an impeccable resume so she hoped that helped her in that. "What do you say...?"

"First, I'd like to leave on record, _again_, my displeasure of the past months. You know I didn't like your technique..." Chris started and Clarisse nodded, looking down. He had said so before. "Second... I think is the best plan you came up with." Clarisse looked up to see a smiling Chris. "I know you're the best at your job but I also want you to be the best mother you can... Being a single parent doesn't suit me." He joked at the end.

Clarisse rolled her eyes but smirked at him before hugging him tightly. Chris didn't need to hear the words, he knew exactly what she was trying to tell him.

"Thank you." She whispered in his ear.

"Love you too, _Clary_.

"Punk!"


End file.
